I stopped by Fatih Mosque at 182 Rhodes Avenue in East End Toronto to pray my Dhuhr Prayers.
The time for the Asr Prayer was not that long after, so I stayed and would also pray Asr.
This is new… and a first as far as I can immediately recall.
Shoe Cabinets with closing doors and not simply the expected shoe shelves.
It sure does improve the welcomingness of the visual space in the Foyer of the Masjid.
Also improving the welcomingness will be freshly repainted bright white walls.
I found the Masjid and its prayer hall filled with a familiar smell of fresh paint.
Two Turkish brothers had been carefully repainting the walls with fresh coats of white.
So careful, that neither of them used a drop sheet on the carpeted floor of the Masjid.
I saw zero drops of paint anywhere where it shouldn’t be.
MashAllah.
This water faucet…
It feels like a stream of flowing water or fountain rather than a vertical tiny firehose of water as I did my wudu.
Can’t recall seeing this at any wudu station during my travels.
Maybe I did? I got to think back now….
Islamic Artwork and framed Qur’an passages which adorned the walls of the main prayer hall had been temporarily removed.
The walls looked bare in its dull eggshell colour.
Only with the contrast of the newly painted areas with the old, could I see the difference.
Luminescence is the word I am looking for.
These one-a-day tear-away Hijri calendars can be expected to be found in Turkish Masjids and Islamic Centres affiliated with the United Canadian Muslim Association.
Another UCMA Masjid is Metro Vancouver’s Eyüp Sultan Camii in Burnaby, British Columbia which I visited on Day 18 of Ramadan 2018.
I’ve seen these freely available at the start of new years in the past, yet I can’t immediately find any photographs of them appearing earlier on 30 Masjids.
…Adhan Al Asr – Call to Afternoon Prayer…
The Imam called the Adhan.
He asked me to call the Iqamah.
Iman then lead the four rakats (units) of Salat Al Asr / The Afternoon Prayer.
Taped on the back of the front door were posters with fundraising/donation information for recent earthquakes in Turkey and Northern Syria.
Fatih Mosque photographed two years ago on Sunday March 14 2021 :
Fatih Mosque first appeared on 30 Masjids in 30 Days of Ramadan during the first year of this blog,
Fatih Mosque – Day 7 of Ramadan 2011.
Alhumdulillah, that entry remains worthwhile reading.
182 Rhodes Avenue when it was Toronto’s Orange Lodge the 1960s…
Here’s what the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario (ACO) says about 182 Rhodes Avenue :
“This building was one of the first mosque opened by Muslims back in 1965’s.
It has a significant place in the lives of Muslim first comers to Canada.
This building is where Muslim community grew out and represents the history of Muslim organizations in Ontario.
The building at 182 Rhodes Avenue itself is protected historic building by the City of Toronto.
This building was originally used as the local lodge of the Orange Order, a Protestant, fraternal organization with a long history of opposition to Roman Catholicism in Toronto until Muslims bought the property in late 1965’s.
Orange Hall was officially converted into a Mosque for Muslims of all ethnic backgrounds.
And became one of the two first mosque opened in Toronto.
In 1993 after it was put out for sale, United Canadian Muslim Association bought this property with Mosque street number 182 Rhodes Avenue and Imam’s Residence 184 Rhodes Avenue.
Extensive rennovations were done on both buildings.”
I had only intended to stop here to complete my prayers and continue with my day,
Yet finding Fatih Mosque being Freshly Repainted ahead of Ramadan 2023 / Ramadan 1444,
I’m considering this then to be the beginning of my 30 Masjids in 30 Days of Ramadan 2023.
Bismillah . . .
